For back/forward, you can tell from the top left of the browser right under the Opera menu tab. If you can go back, there's an arrow highlight pointed left. Just click on it, and you move to an earlier page. If you can go forward, there's an arrow highlighted pointed right. By the keyboard, just press the backspace key and you go back to an earlier page you were at, and shift backspace and you can go forward (assuming you have been navigating on the web and there are pages before and after to go to).

Are you in a Windows operating system? I use Windows 7. The regular windows commands work for cut and paste. If you're in a bar/box where you're putting information (let's say a search bar, just operate as you would in any other windows environment. You can also use Windows keyboard shortcuts. Select your text, then Control x cuts it, control c copies it, control v pastes it. If you're not using Windows, what Operating system are you using? Someone else would have to comment on it.

For zooming, click on the Opera Menu, and you will see the Zoom feature maybe a third or fourth of the way from the top. For keyboard shortcuts to zooming or making smaller, press the f1 key (or access it by clicking on the Opera menu, top far left of browser, and the clicking on help). Then click on navigate with shortcuts. Generally, you can enlarge font with control +, and make it smaller with control - (If you activate advanced shortcuts, you can enlarge font with 0, make it smaller with 9, and 6 restores you to where you were at the beginning.

thanks, I did finally somehow, not sure how, get a toolbar but how can I customize it, take out or add things or make the search area smaller (it takes up most of the toolbar. I have version (nothing will copy and its a long number 210.1432.67

When I saw 210, instead of 21.0, I must be sleepy, because I got lost Thanks, linuxmint7. I'm still confused about the toolbar that 3dogsnite refers to. Unless he's referring to the extension icon toolbar? That's the only thing that can make the address bar/omni-search bar smaller. The more extensions you add, and icons that have to show on that bar, the smaller the address bar/omni-search bar becomes. You can take out extension icons by using the keyboard shortcut, contr shift E, and put a check in the boxes where you want the icons hid from the toolbar, or you can deactivate some or all of the extensions, and thereby take away the icon(s). That will make the address bar/omni-search bar larger. If you restore the icons you took away through "hide" or "deactivate," you then make the address-bar/omni-search bar smaller.

Other than what I just mentioned, there's not, as far as I can figure out, much ability to customize it. You cannot change the order of the extension icons. You cannot cut or paste on that extension icon toolbar. Nor enlarge or decrease fonts by clicking on it (you can easily enlarge or decrease font size through other actions. However to the left of the address bar/omni-search bar, should be the left-pointing and right-pinting arrows (which you click on with the mouse) for going back and going forward. And Opera 21 is very much usable because all of the other functions that 3dogsnite says he wants in his initial post, can be gotten through other means.

But what linuxmint7 asks for, would help a lot, "a screen shot showing the problem." At this point, it's not clear there is one. It's just a question of learning how to do things in Opera 21.